McDonald’s Getting Really Intense About Coffee

The battle for coffee-chain supremacy has gotten hot and foamy: In its latest attempt to steal customers away from Starbucks, McDonald’s is installing $13,000 machines in franchises and making its own pumpkin spice lattes. But are new drinks, like its chocolate-covered strawberry frappe, taking things too far? Yes, according to Hedgeye Risk Management managing director Howard Penney. The quest to make more technically proficient lattes and espresso drinks is “actually hurting them, not helping them,” he says, because steaming milk and adding other flourishes allegedly increases production times and slows down the chain’s burger game. [Bloomberg, Brand Eating]